BACKGROUND:
Nausea and vomiting are common in early pregnancy and can have negative effects on the pregnancy depending on their intensity and frequency(1). Auriculotherapy is an alternative treatment for reducing symptoms and allopathic medications during this period; however, protocols and types of stimuli are still controversial

OBJECTIVES:
To evaluate the efficacy of auricular laserpuncture in gestational nausea and vomiting

METHODS:
Randomized, parallel, factorial, double-blind study with 100 pregnant women allocated into four groups (25 in each): intervention (auricular laserpuncture and auriculotherapy), control, and placebo with cotton, followed for fifteen days, seven for analysis of the outcome. Protocol tested for auricular points in the intervention groups: Stomach, Cardia, Central Nervous System, Autonomic Nervous System, Kidney, Subcortex and Occipital(5-8), and in the placebo group the points were random: Knee, Ankle, Elbow, Leg, Arm, Neck and Lung(5-6). The Pregnancy Unique Quantification of Emesis (PUQE) score and the Grade of Auricular Palpation were used to analyze nausea and vomiting. Approved by the Ethics Committee 5.091.470.

RESULTS:
The initial symptoms were moderate in all groups, and compared to the placebo group, the auricular laserpuncture and auriculotherapy groups reduced (p<0.050) the PUQE Score scores by -1.3 (95% CI: -2.24; -0.41) and -1.14 (95% CI: -2.11; -0.17), respectively. The use of antiemetics was higher in the control and placebo groups. Before the intervention, most pregnant women in the four groups had Grade II palpation. Pregnant women who underwent auriculotherapy and auricular laser puncture showed a statistically significant reduction in the degree of palpation, which went to Grade I after seven days, indicating stabilization of those points and balance of the corresponding organ.

CONCLUSIONS:
Auricular laserpuncture was as effective as auriculotherapy in reducing nausea/vomiting and the use of allopathic medications, with potential for acceptance of auricular laserpuncture by pregnant women. Universal Trial Number: U1111-1276-2431.

KEY MESSAGE:
Auricular laserpuncture reduces nausea and vomiting during pregnancy Poster session 1 (Group A)